Capsule-filling device with capsule hopper feed



Dec. 8, 1953 G. B. LAWRENCE ET AL & 3

CAPSULE-FILLING DEVICE WITH CAPSULE HOPPER FEED Filed Jan. 3, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet IN V EN TORS GERALD B.LAWRENCE BY JULES AH B RMAN ATToRNEY D 1953 G. B. LAWRENCE ET AL 2,661,88.4

CAPSULE-FILLING DEVICE WITH CAPSULE HOPPER FEED Filed Jan. 3, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet'2 Z INVENTORS GERALD B. LAWRENCE BY Jl/LES A., H [RMAN ATTORNEY Dec. 8, 1953 G. B. 'LAWRENCE ET AL 5 3 CAPSULE-F'ILLING DEVICE WITH CAPSULE HOPPER FEED Filed Jan. 3, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 IN VEN TORS GERALD B. LAWRENCE BY JUL ES A. HU EPMAV ATTORNEY CAPSULE-FILLING DEVICE WITH CAPSULE HOPPER FEED Filed Jan. 3, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 G. B. LAWRENCE ET AL i/as III

Dec. 8, 1953 INVENTORS GERALD B. LA WRENCE BY JULES %Um/w f ATTORNEY Patented Dec. 8, 1953 &661384 CAPSULE-FILLING DEVICE WITH CAPSULE HOPPER FEED Gerald B. Law'ence, New York, and Jules A.

Huberman, Brooklyn, N. Y. said Lawrence assignor to said Huberman Application January 3, 1951, Serial No. %4,108 10 Claims. (Cl. 226-41) The present invention relates to a device for automatically filling capsules for medicinal and allied purposes.

An object of this invention is to provide an apparatus adapted to receive a load or clip of closed but empty capsules and having means for automatically uncapping these -capsules, loading them with a powder from a suitable reservoir, recapping the loaded capsules and ejectng them ready for sale or storage.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the character set forth above wherein contamination of the powder is positively prsvented by virtue of the fact that the powder,

before being loaded into the capsule, comes into contact only with a few selected parts which in turn are of non-oxidizable material, such as aluminum or stainless steel, and are readily removable for cleaning and sterilization.

A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus as specified which will accommodate a variety of sizes of -capsules without requiring more than the exchange of a few readily accessible parts.

Still another object of the instant invention is to provide an apparatus in accordance with the foregoing which will' rapidly and dependably process, one after the other, a large number of capsues placed in its hopper and which'will perform the necessary Operations, including starting and stopping; without requiring the attention of an operator.

Ye't a further object of this invention is to provide mechanism of relatively simple and inexpensive Construction for the purpose of performing the various functions of the apparatus out- 'lined above.

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawing which shows a now preferred embodirnent. In the drawing:

Fig. l is a top plan View of an apparatus according tothe invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation taken substantially on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken substantially on the line 3-3' of Fig. 2;

Fig. i is a fragmentary sectional elevation taken substantially on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

' Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional plan view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation taken substan- 'tially on the line 5-6 of Fig. 2; and

The apparatus shown in the drawing comprises i and the tube ZI.

capsules a frame or casing which consists of a top platform ll, a bottom platform !2 and side walls l3, !4. Top platform ll is provided with a circular cutout !5 (Fig. 2) and with a second, cartridge-shaped cutout !5 below which there is formed a dependent socket ll. The socket il' may be of rectangular shape externally, as shown, its interier being of the same horizontal cross section as and in registry with the cutout is; the socket walls are traversed by a bottom opening s, a side hole- !9 provided at the flat righthand end of the cartridge-shaped socket chamber, and a discharge port 2@ provided at the round left-hand end thereof. Port 25 opens into a downwardly curved discharge tube 2! secured by means of a ange 22 to the socket i l.

The socket il is adapted to receive a hopper or magazine 23 which is introduced into it from above through the cutout iS and which contains a supply of empty capsules 24 each closed by a 'cap 25. The capsules are sta-cked in horizontal position within the oblong hopper chamber, with the caps 25 thereof facing the fiat right-hand `end of the hopper. At the lower extremity of the hopper 23 there is provided a small hole 26 in alignment with the hole 19 and a large hole !i in alignment with the port 20. A weight 23, shaped to fit slidingly within the hopper chamber, bears upon the topmost capsule 2&- while the cap of the lowermost capsule depresses a switch arm 29 extending through the bottom opening Arm 29 forms part of a micro-switch ec which controls. the' starting and the' stopping of the app-aratus in a manner subsequently described in connection with Fig. '7. The weight 28 is provided at its underside with a recess si -designed to receive the switch arm 29 when the weight reaches the bottom of the hopper 23, this -situation occurring after the last capsule 24 has been ejected therefrom by the action of a solenoid 32 whose plunger 33 is positioned to penetrate the side holes I 9, 25 for the purpose of ejecting each capsule through the ports ze, 21 The micro-switch 3@ has a low enough Operating torque-to respond to the pressure exerted by one or more capsules 2 as well as the weight 28, the latter being, of course, suf- .ficiently light to prevent crushing or serious deformation of the gelatin shells forming these Swingable through a horizontal angle of ninety degrees is a J-sh-aped control arm 34 the two .branches of which are journaled on rod 35 supported. in the platforms ll and !2, the lower, shorter branch of the J restingon ashoulde' 38 of the rod. Between these two branohes there are positioned three vertically oriented electromagnets 31, 38 and 33, spaced approximately orty-five degrees apart on an arcuate support 40 which carries pins 45, 42 to limit the Swing of the arm 34. The right-hand extremity of this arm (as viewed, for example, in Figs. 2 and 3) acts as an armature for these magnets and, by virtue of its bent shape, forms an almost completely closed magnetic circuit with the core of. whichever magnet it is aligned with; selective energization of the magnets 31, 38 and Sii will, therefore, have the eect of pulling the arm 34 into a respective one of three Operating posi tions spaced orty-five degrees apart, as best seen in Fig. 3 where the first two of these positions (associated with magnets 31- and 33) have been indicated in dot-dash lines and the third position (associated with magnet ee has been shown in full.

It will be noted in this connection that the cores of the outermost magnets 31 and: se are positioned in slightly overlappirg relationship with the pins 4! and 42, respectively, so that energization of either of these magnets will tend to displace the arm 34 beyond the limits of its Operating arc. This arrangement will have the effect of positively indexing the control arm in either its first or its third position as defned by the contact between the arin and the respective pin 4l, 42. Means for positively indexing the arm in its second, or intermediate, position will be described later on.

The arm 34 carries a horizontal plate 43 provided with a funnel-shaped aperture 44 below which there is positioned the plunger 45 of a solenoid 46 mounted on the underside of the plate. In the first Operating position of arm 34 and plate 43 (Fig. 6) the aperture 44 is located directly under the lower end of the discharge tube 21 so as to receive an empty capsule 24 ejected through that tube, the bottom of the capsule coming to rest on the cup-shaped top` of the. plunger 45 just below the plate 43. Aperture' 44 is flanked by the movable jaw 41 and the horizontallyfixed jaw 48 of a first gripper which is controlled by an electromagnet 453, the latter being lodged in a recess 553 of the plate` 43. Two pins 51 secure the stationary jaw 43 to the plate 43 while` a third pin 52, also rising from this plate,` serves as a pivot for the movable jaw 41. The free extremity of the jaw 41 forms an armature 53 for the magnet is and plays in a cutaway portion of the bottom of recess 50. Normally, i. e. with the magnet 49 de-energized, the movable jaw 41 is held away from its mate 48 by a spring 54. The stationary jaw 48 forms an obtuse angle around the aperture 44 and is lined with a pad 55 of sponge rubber or the like, designed to afiord firm yet resilient contact with a capsule 24 engaged by the gripper. As best seen in Fig. 6, the height of the jaws 41, 48 is such that the gripper will engage only the body of the capsule but' not the cap 25 thereof. Both jaws are slidable on their respective pins i, 52 so that they may rise with respect to the plate 43, against the action of respective springs 58, 51, when the solenoid 46 operates to lift the capsule 24 from its seat under circumstances hereinater set forth.

In its second Operating position (Fig. 4) the I plate 43 is aligned with a similar plate 58 tiltably mounted above the ormer by means of a bracket 55! depending from the platform ll. The underside of plate 58 is provided with a cup-shaped recess 5nadapted to receive the cap- 25 of a capsule 24 held in the first gripper 41, 48. Recess ti] is fianked by the movable jaw 6! and the stationary jaw 62 of a second gripper which is in all respects similar to the first gripper except that its jaws are not slidable relative to the plate 58. The pivot for the jaw 5! is shown at 53. This jaw is controlled by an electromagnet 64, lodged in a recess of the plate 58, and by a restoring spring (not shown) similar to spring 54 of the lower pair.

Normally the plate 58 is tilted upwardly, as shown in Fig., 2 and in full lines in Fig. 4, so as to clear the plate 43 and the gripper 41, 48 carried thereon. It then abuts the end of a horizontal extension 65 of the bracket 59 to which is Secured a spring 66 holding the plate in its tilted position. Adapted to swing the plate 58 downwardly about its pivots 61 (only one shown) is an electromagnet 53 supported on the bracket 59 and co-operating with an armature 69 provided on the rear end of the plate. Extending downwardly from the front edge of the plate 58 is asword 10 which, upon the plate being swung toward the' horizontal by the action of magnet 68, enters an upwardly fiaredslot 1 i, Fig. 3, in the lower plate 43, thereby accurately aligning the latter with the plate 58 and bringing the recess 60' into registry with the aperture 44. The spacing between the two plates in that position (indicated in dot-dash lines in Fig. 4) is, such that the upper gripp'er 51, 62 will be able to engage the cap 25 of a capsule 24 held between the jaws 41, 43 of the lower gripper.

A collector pipe 1.2, extending inclinedly below theplatform 12, serves as an outlet for the loaded capsules and terminates in a unnel-shaped head 13 which penetrates the platform !2 below the position of plate 58 in substantial' alignment with the recess 63 thereof. The pipe 12 may lea-d to any suitable depository (not shown) designed to receive the output of the apparatus.

In the third Operating position of the arm 34 (Fig. 2) the aperture 44 of plate 43 is located below but eccentrically of the circular cutout' !5 formed in, the platform ll. This cutout serves for the insertion of a reservoir or cup 14 which contains the powder 15' to be loaded into the' capsules 24, the cup being shown empty of powder in the cross section of Fig. 5. Cup 14 is provided along its upper edge with a lip 15 fitting into a corresponding recess around the cutout l, this arrangement causing the cup to hang down into the housing H--l4 with its bottom positioned closely above the gripper 41, 48 of the plate 43. The cup 14 may be held in position by spring clips 11, mounted pivotably on the platform i l for engagement with the lip 15, and may be closed` by a cover 18 having a knob 19.

A vertical stud shaft se is journaled in the center of the cup'. bottom, this shaft having a trusto-pyramidal top si and carrying a pinion 32 at its lower' end. The pinion 82 moshes with a gear 33 rotatably carried on the underside of the cup 14, this gear in turn being in engagement with' a pinion 84 when the cup is in position within the cutout %5. Pinion 84 is carriedon a vertical shaft 85 projecting from a box ?3 3 which houses the motor 81. (see Fig. '1) as well as any required speed' Changer' or other transmission means. By providing the pinions 82 and 84 with an equal number of teeth, shafts se and 85 will rotate in unison.

A wiper blade 83, of sector-shaped configuration, is removably positioned inside the cup 14" for rotation in the direction of the arrow (Fig. 5). This blade has a low' trailing edge 89 a. raised leading edge' 90 and a hub 91 whose bottom recess mates with the trusto-pyramidal top a of shaft 85, thereby coupling the wiper 38 to this shaft. Normally, i. e. in the quiescent condition of the apparatus, the wiper blade is in the position illustrated in dot-dash lines in Fig. in which it overlies an aperture 92 provided in the bottom oi the cup id, this aperture having a diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter of capsule 24 and being aligned with the aperture 45 of plate 43 When the latter is in its position shown in Fig. 2.

The micro-switch 30 rests on a box 93 which contains a timer mechanism comprising a drum and a motor 95 therefor, the latter being shown only in the circuit diagram of Fig. '7. Box t3 may also contain suitable transmission means coupling the motor 95 to the drum sa, as indicated schematically at 96 in Fig. 7, as weil as a step-down transformer 91, rectifier 68 and smoothing network es whereby power is supplied to the motors ti, 535 from alternating-current mains ma.

Associated with drum 94 are ten wipers, designated !ti through ne, co-operating at various instants with corresponding contact strip s provided on the face of the drum. Drum 94 is grounded, as is the positive terminal of the power source %it-lihi. A wiper lll is connected in parailel with wiper !BS and co-operates with a grounded conductor strip 2 on a disk 3 with o WlCh it makes contact in all off-normal positions of the disk, the disk 3 being carried on the shaft 85 (indicated schematicaily in Fig. 7) to rotate in unison with Wiper blade &3.

Negative bus conductor H i is connected to wiper isi via solenoid 32, to wiper 232 via magnet tt, and wipers 33, m and ich via nagnets 3?, 38 and 3%, respectively, to wiper &te via solenoic-I dt, to wipers !ti and ![98 via magnets &38 and t, respectively, and to wipers iee, !Hi via motors ti' and 95, respectively. The nicro-switch Sii shuni-s the wiper Hi) to ground.

The periphery of drum t i is shown developed in Fig. 'i' and on it are laid up a series of inaginary lines, designated i) 10, denoting successive m time positions of the drum in respect to the wipers iii -i it. These lines define ten intervals of equal duration which may each be equal to one second, for example, and which together form a complete cycle of operations of the timer and, therewith, of entire apparatus. One such cycle will now be described.

With the mechanism at rest, the timer is in position 0 and the micro-switch tt is open as shown. When power is connected to hus conductor e, magnet 38 is energized via wiper !t l and causes the control arm ?t to assume its second, or intermediate, position so as to come into the field of attracton of magnet t'i ii it had previously been in or near its third position adjacent the loading cup l. When a magazine 23 i'ull with capsules i is placed in the socket i?, micro-switch arm 255 is depressed and closes a circuit for the operation of motor 95. Drum 94 rotates and after a short time shunts the microswitch 3@ over a homing strip associated with wiper ne, thereby insuring continued operation oi motor 85 until the mechanisrn returns to its starting position. At the same time the magnet,

as is de-energized and magnet 3? operates to swing the control arm 34 into its first position below the tube or chute 21.

In position l of the drum Si -l the solenoid 32 operates momentarily and its plunger 33 ejects the lowest capsule &E 'through the tube ?i as indicated in dot-dash lines in Fig. 2. This capsule lands through the open jaws di', it of the lower gripper (magnet 59 being unoperated) in the aperture 44 oi plate 43. Switch arin 29 may rise for a brief instant during the movement of plunger 33, but this action has no effect in View of the Shunt through wiper HE). Thereater the magnet 39 attracts the movable jaw i? is indicated in dot-dash lines in Fig. 3, the gripper thus closing about the capsule Zt and remaining in this position until the middle of the nnth interval.

At the end of the second interval the magnet 31 is de-energized and magnet 38 re-attracts the arm 3:! to place plate ti underneath plate 53 whose gripper El, 62 is open at this time, magnet t being unoperated. Magnet 58 energized in position 2% of drum eti to tilt the plate 3 3 downwardly, causing the upper gripper to embrace the cap of the capsule 2 held in the lower gripper. At the beginning of the iourth interval magnet se is energized causes gripper ti, 52 to close firmly about the cap 25. When magnet 88 releases shortly thereafter, spring t lifts up the plate 58 with its gripper, therehy removing the cap 25 from the capsule 2 3 is iliustrated in Fig. 2. Magnet 38 now releases and magnet 35 swings the arm :it into its third position below the cup T.

When the now open capsule 24 has come to rest under the aperture 32 of cup i i, solenoid 63 operates in the fifth interval and causes the capsule as well as the gripper i?, se to rise, plunger urging the capsule into firm contact with the underside of the cup 'l' around the aperture 92. In the sixth interi/al the wiper me engages a conductive segment on the drum &t to energize motor 86 which rotates shaft 85, disi: ii, gears 82-86, shaft 32 and wiper hiade 88. As soon as the disk i' !3 leaves its home position, wiper ita is shunted over contact i i i and strip i l? so as to maintain the motor &ti operated after the wiper Hit has left its segment; the wiper hlade is thus carried through a complete revolution, motor 36 stopping when the disk l iihas returned to its starting position to break the connection hetween contact Hi and strip i !2.

When the trailing edge 3% ci' the wipe' clears the aperture &2, powder begins to drop into the capsule 2 3 and fills it up; toward the end of its movement the raised leadin edge %8 of the Wiper hlade sweeps over the aperture to clear it of excess powder, whereupon the hlade comes to rest in its normal position which seals the bottom of the cup M. If this bottom is thin enough, substantially all the powder remaining within the aperture 32 will adhere to the filling oi capsule 25 when the latter descends in the middle of the seventh interval, as a result of the de-energization of solenoid 46, so that loading of the capsule can he acccmplished practically without less.

In position 7 of drum t i the magnet 39 releases and magnet 38 restores the assembly 3 i, &3 to its second position aligned with the upper plate 58. Magnet 68 is thereafter re-operated to lower the plate 53, thereby replacing the cap 25 on the loaded capsule 25. In the middle oi the ninth interval the magnets ii) and ss release simultaneously and soienoid :t is energized: Spring ti; now causes the gripper si, ti to lift up cap together with the filled capsule 2 3 which has been released from the gripper l'i, te, the rise of plunger 45 insuring that the capsule is positively and instantaneously liberated from the jaw's of the lower gripper. Solenoid 46 and magnet 38 are de-energized at the endof the ninth interva causing the closing of said starting circuit in response to the presence of a capsule in said magazine.

8. The combination according to claim '1, including a socket removably receiving said magazine, said socket and said magazine being provided with aligned openings, said feeler means comprising an arm extending through said aligned openings into contact with a capsule in said magazine.

9. The combination according to claim 8 wherein said magazine is an upright tube adapted tohold said capsules in vertically stacked position, said arm entering said tube from below and being depressible by the weight of a capsule in contact therewith.

10. The combination according to claim 9,

including a weight member in said tube hearing' upon said capsules, said weight member being provided at its underside with a recess adapted to receive said arm upon ejection of the last capsule from said tube, thereby removing pressure from said arm. i

GERALD B. LAWRENCE.

JULES A. HUBERMAN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 578,985 Grove Mar. 16, 1897 1,993,092 Ferro Mar. 5, 1935 1,993,716 Hanley et al. Mar. 5, 1935 2,198,225 Newey Apr. 23, 1940 

